The Way Of The Metagamer 2: In Name Only
The Way Of The Metagamer 2: In Name Only is a sequel to The Way Of The Metagamer in feature film format. It bears absolutely no resemblance to the original The Way Of The Metagamer comic: * It's a completely different genre. The original is a meta-fantasy-sci fi-comedy. In Name Only is a faux-film noir with superheroes. * There are no recurring characters or plot points from the original work. * Most absurdly, it has a fourth wall. Characters '' In Name Only'' stars The Detective, an incredibly badass private investigator prone to making quips and stealing evidence. Trailers All information regarding In Name Only has been provided in short "trailers" appearing in the original The Way Of The Metagamer. The First Trailer The first trailer was played in comic #109. It introduced The Detective, The Watson, and several of The Detective's mannerisms: his fondness for quipping, his tendency to steal evidence, and his delusions regarding the presence of a fourth wall. The Second Trailer The second trailer was played in comic #121. It was intentionally filled with plot spoilers, therefore ruining the biggest twists in the actual film. The Third Trailer The third trailer was played in comic #127. It focused on The Detective's backstory: * First, it featured obvious homage to Batman, as The Detective's parents were killed by an assassin, and then a Templar fell through his window. * Said Templar was radioactive (Spider-Man). * The Detective made a ring out of a Green Lantern (Green Lantern (duh)). * His home planet was destroyed, sending him to Earth as a baby (Superman). * He got shrapnel stuck in his heart, then made a suit of armour in a cave with a box of scraps (Iron Man). * Belted by gamma rays (The Incredible Hulk). * Inhaled fumes from hard water (The Flash). * Exposed to a cosmic storm (The Fantastic Four). * Injected with Wolverine's DNA, brain exploded (Deadpool). Notably, the last of these may explain his fourth wall delusions, as Deadpool is another notorious fourth wall breaker. The Fourth Trailer At this point, comic #138, the Author had completely run out of ideas for The Detective; he was already as badass as could possibly ever be. Thus, the Author asked Trope-tan for assistance. She suggested that the Detective should be alcoholic, which suited the faux-film noir theme of the film. However, he wouldn't suffer any ill effects from this because, as revealed in the previous trailer, the Detective has control of the Speed Force since he is The Flash. The Fifth Trailer This trailer, played in comic #149, drastically altered the film's concept. The Author had sent the drafts for In Name Only to a publisher, and they made… some modifications. The resulting film was designed to cater to children. Gone was the film noir, gone was the monochrome, gone were the quips, and gone was any entertainment value. Instead came a nauseatingly technicolour tale in which the Detective must solve such crimes as "who stole the cookie from the cookie jar", and in which "bullying is wrong" counts as a decent quip. It was… horrible.